NZ intervenes in whaling case

New Zealand has formally intervened in Australia's legal case against Japan over whaling.

The NZ government told the International Court of Justice it was necessary to put its side of the dispute over scientific whaling, a statement released by the court said on Friday.

Australia began the case in 2010, arguing that Antarctic whaling by Japan was commercial, and not scientific as defined in the International Convention on the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW).

Japan rejected accusations it was breaching both the convention, and a ban on whaling in the Antarctic, claiming instead it was exercising its right to award scientific permits.

In the court's statement, the NZ government outlines strict rules for scientific permits, and said any whaling that did not meet these rules was prohibited.

NZ's decision to join the proceedings was probably co-ordinated with Australia in preparation for the oral phase of the case, according to Don Rothwell, professor of international law at the Australian National University.

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"What may be interesting to see is whether other state parties to the ICRW take a similar course of action," Professor Rothwell said.

Other countries potentially interested in joining the case could include the Netherlands on the anti-whaling side, and Iceland or South Korea on Japan's side.

The case's written proceedings were abbreviated earlier this year when Australia decided it was not necessary to reply to the Japanese written case, or counter memorial.